Waves Honored by Inland Empire Swimming

The Waves received two big annual awards this past weekend at the Inland Empire Swimming (IES) House of Delegates meeting in Moses Lake.

Cindy Merrick (pictured on right) was named Volunteer of the Year for the 2011-2012 season, while Teri Madill was named Official of the Year.

In addition to these awards, Head Coach Kevin Wang was named to the IES Executive Board as the Senior Swimming VIce Chairman.

Cindy, who has had swimmers on the Waves for over 10 years, runs the computer and oversees the results of all Waves hosted meets, including our Masters meets.  Additionally, she was co-Administrative Referee for IES Summer Championship meet, and ran the computer for the Summer Solstice Meet.  She was also returned to her position as IES Secretary for a 3rd term this past weekend.  Cindy has also been very active in other ways with the Waves, helping out with any and every project to keep the team running smoothly and effectively.  Cindy, whose husband, Kent, is the Waves current Board President, had all 4 of their children swimming for many years, starting in 1999.  Currently, she has two senior swimmers on the team: Meghan, who is  senior at Mt. Spokane, and Brandon, who is a freshman.

Teri has been with the Waves since 2005, and began officiating swim meets as a Stroke and Turn official in 2006.  Since then, she has attained a National Level 3 Certification as a Stroke and Turn official, and has willingly shared her expertise in training new officials.  Additionally, she is a Starter and has attained a National Level 2 Certification as a Referee (referees oversee the officials at meets, make final rulings on issues and disqualifications, and work with the coaches to fully understand those rulings).  During the 2011-2012 season, she served as Meet Referee for developmental meets, IES Junior Champs, the Lewis-Clark Neptune's Fazarri Invitational, and the Summer Solstice Meet.  Additionally, she was a Chief Judge for IES Summer Champs, and has officiated at IES Short Course Champs, Age Group Sectionals, and the Western Zones Championships.  Teri, and her husband Bruce, currently have 3 swimmers on the Waves and have had all 4 of their children swim: Isabel is a freshman and in the senior group, while Sophie and Tommy are in the regional group.

Finally, Coach Kevin has also been returned to the IES Executive Board as the Senior Swimming Vice Chairman.  This position oversees and promotes the high school-level athletes in IES, managing the travel fund for national level meets and helping coaches and athletes attend high level meets for these swimmers.  Additionally, he will be an integral part of the operations of IES, working with the other members of the Executive Board to ensure the stability of swimming and promote it throughout Eastern Washington, North Idaho, and Northeastern Oregon.  This is Kevin's third stint on the board, serving previously for two terms as Coaches Representative. He has also served on IES governance and time standards committees during his nearly 6 years as the Waves Head Coach.

For more information about Inland Empire Swimming, please visit their website at www.ieswim.org

For more information about the Waves, please visit their website at www.spokanewaves.org